Signifying Nothing

Poor players who strut

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Saturday,July 05,2003

overcoming the sharp edge

We experienced a rather pleasant way to celebrate one's and one's country's independence. Whilst I was cleaning yesterday I was listening to the BBC all day. I wasn't struck by the irony until we started slooshing the beer out on the Heber M. Wells Memorial Beer Garden.

The day did involve many beers, but no fear, I did not consume them all. I had just enough to think that putting a cigarette on a stick and smoking it was the funniest thing I'd ever seen in the world (which, of course, it was). Happiness was the general rule, and I was particularly happy to cut loose, as the kids say, and two-step with the devil and his demon alkeehol.

Snapshot: clean, music, grocery store, music, clean, music, recycle, clean, duct tape, clean, music, email, journal, music, beer, BBQ, beer; music, beer, debate, beer, music, debate, beer, fireworks, crisis, beer, music, beer, fireworks, resolution, beer, fireworks, music, discussion of teaching, beer, jokes, complaints about testing systems, beer, music, beer, music, laughter, bamboo skewer/pringles cap hockey, beer, cigarettes on a stick, sleep.

posted at 10:05:11 AM by Clint--comment

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Friday,July 04,2003

excellent performance and reliability

Excuse me while I go drink 30 beers.

posted at 04:32:53 PM by Clint--comment

watched it all saturday

Friend Kendra and I convinced Friend John to make a blog. What the hell is going on around here?

posted at 12:46:07 AM by Clint--comment

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Thursday,July 03,2003

marketed by Wal-Mart

Came home and took a long sweaty nap. Woke up about an hour or so ago and drank some coffee. Yes it is hot, and only going to get hotter, and I drink coffee. Folks are bound here, and my house is, as usual, a wreck, but do I even pick up the junk on the front room floor? Nope.

Now that I am awake again, I'm thinking of editing a quasi-movie I put together about the Spiral Jetty. Basically I've just cut together some stills and given them some animation in Premiere as well as some funky effects. The folks coming over will cut that short, of course, but that's not bad thing. Friends good. My current malaise bad.

Tomorrow I do my patriotic duty by BBQing and drinking beer.

posted at 10:06:00 PM by Clint--comment

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Wednesday,July 02,2003

sound horn, we'll open

Ah it was pretty pleasant last night. It all started with a class A ramble about town. I haven’t been on a good bar ramble since I first started dating Candace. She is not much of a bar person, so hey, you do what you do when you are dating. Now that I am free of any such encumbrance, I can resume my dissolute ways. I suggested pool to neighbor Jeff who’s been going through a lot of personal crises lately, and he readily agreed that it would be good to get out.

Now about this time I would have further suggested that we go to Ya’Butts, but, unfortunately, Ya’Butts is no more. Admittedly it had the stupidest name for a bar that many had ever seen, but it was a place with a lot of character and the gut-wrenchingest, odoriferous men’s room on the planet, and great deals on both booze and pool. Ah well, the slum lords who owns that block of land has decided to raze the block and put, you guessed it, a parking lot! Ah just what Salt Lake needs, another fucking parking lot where they can charge $8.00 for “event” (insert any activity you want for "event") parking. Ah, I can wax nostalgic about Ya’Butts a.k.a. Spanky’s a.k.a. Cinema in your Face a.k.a. the Pool Hall/Porno theatre, but I shan't at this time.

On to dissolution!

There is a somewhat new place in town called Pool Hall Junkies which neither Jeff or I have been to, so we decided to check it out, looking forward to slaking our thirst on a few frosty ones. Initially quite impressed with Pool Hall Junkies number of tables, I soon became disillusioned. The place was dead. The beer was tepid and only of 2 varieties. The pool far too expensive. The juke box suckamagnificus. The staff was, if not surly, then just very uninterested in her job. And the bathroom was sparkling clean. There were a few patrons present—a couple of drunk guys hitting on the surly bar tender/waitress/tv watcher; the waitress' boyfriend; a yuppie couple slumming; and a group of 5 or 6 thugs. The thugs were kitted out in basketball jerseys, side-ways hats and lots and lots of bling bling bling costume jewelry. You got to love people who wear stocking caps when it is 98 outside. Soon the thugs grew tired of the place and headed outside, sticking around out front for at least 20 minutes.

I turned to Jeff and said “I wonder what are the SLC thugz are doing out there?” He laughed. Salt Lake and gang bangers does seem incongruous, doesn’t it?

In all, Pool Hall Junkies was a somewhat dissatisfying experience, although we did enjoy the pool, however. I, being the crap-ass pool player I am, won no game out-right, but did manage to win by Jeff’s ill luck of scratching the 8 ball.

Having dutifully spent an hour sucking at pool, I prompted Jeff to leave. “Let’s get the fuck out of here,” I said, adding “this place sucks.” As we left Pool Hall Junkies to the sweating streets of SLC, we both agreed that we wouldn’t be returning there any time soon. “Fuck that shit,” I said.

The night being only middle-aged (well I did have to get up the next morning, you know) at 10:00 pm, Jeff was still antsy to be out and about. Because of the relationship crises he has been undergoing, he hasn’t had much opportunity to go out, so I wasn’t going to throw water on his flames. “Hey there is that new place,” he said as we drove down Second south.

“What’s that?”

“Banana Joe’s.” Funny that, as I was just reading that morning on pumpkinjuice.com. The site-keeper is working there. In all it didn’t really seem like my kind of place, but hell, if it is hopping, what the hell.

“Let’s go.” We drove to Pierpont, and the street seemed strangely quiet. “Did something happen and nobody told us?” I said to Jeff as we got out of the car.

When we got to the door, Jeff pulled on it, but it stayed shut. As happens all the time, pull first—read later, we found that Banana Joe’s is only open Wednesday through Sunday. The effrontery! Actually I was a it happy, as I thought I wasn’t in that kind of a bar mood.

So we drove off, discussing the possibilities. “We could go to…”

“But what about the new liquor laws?” Basically the liquor laws in Utah have been changed, yet again, to make it even more difficult to go to “private clubs” which are bars that serve liquor in Utah. You can go to a beer bar like Pool Hall Junkies and just get 3.2 beer. If you want anything more you either have to go to a restaurant and order food or hit the private clubs. It used to be that anyone in a private club (hence forward known as "bar") could sponsor you as their guest. Now, however, the law states that the sponsor must arrive with his/her guests and there can only be a maximum of 8 guests. This, of course, throws a big wrench into out-of-towner’s bar-flying since in order to get in now they will absolutely have to buy a temporary membership (anywhere from $5 to $20) in order to get a drink. As for locals, most of us have been avoidant of the membership rule, in that we can usually find some one we know or someone we slightly know, or someone we have never seen before and don’t desire to see again to sponsor us to get in. Silly you say? Welcome to the freak show..

“You know I want to swing by the Urban Lounge before we go anywhere else,” Jeff said turning on to Third South. “I think the Red Bennies might be playing. I’d like to see them.”

“OK,” I said, feeling a bit more relaxed now that we were out in the night air. “Sounds fine.”

When we got to the Urban Lounge we found that the Bennies were not playing, but old friends Erosion, and once Optimus Prime now Blue Sparks were playing. After a bit of wrangling with the door guy, we bought our way in and while Jeff socialized with old friends, I saddled up to the bar to get beer from Ben, my next door neighbor, who was working the bar. Foolishly I should have asked for the specials, since I didn’t find out until later that they had Coors Light for $2 for a 24 oz bottle. That’s some price for beer—even though, of course, it is pure dretch, but what the hell. So I foolishly bought two Squatters Full Suspension Pale Ales.

The Sparks were giving their farewell concert. I haven’t seen Erosion in a very long time, and it was fun to see John Bean and Brett. John is as exuberant as ever—talking wild with big gestures. He was keyed up for the show, but we managed to catch up on things. Erosion is going to break up after they put out their third CD. They have had a long haul of it—5 years now, and it is time to move on. “I don’t know if you know this, but I’m primarily a visual artist.” He then shot off his painting philosophy and promptly stated how he would like, as well, to write. I kept trying to cut in and say “Well if you need a reader, let me know.” But he had already moved on.

Several beers later and the show played out. Erosion was tight. Blue Sparks were fine, but halfway through their set, Jeff turned to me and said “I’m through with this.”

So much for the wandering. We left the bar, feeling happy to be out and away, in very good company with friends abounding, talking about women.

posted at 07:08:36 PM by Clint--comment

boo sniggits

AH so much to write. So little motivation.

posted at 01:56:30 AM by Clint--comment

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Monday,June 30,2003

whip that thang

I guess friend Nathan down in Central America has had a melt down with his girl. Let's see: how many is that this year? Ever feel like you live in a soap opera? I think I will just watch Happy Tree Friends.

posted at 11:14:17 PM by Clint--comment

now available in waffer form

So friend Kendra has a new blog: The Summer of Why.

I've been caring for my neighbor's cat, Boonis. The cat has become quite friendly now that he doesn't have someone there all the time. He has enjoyed seeing me for the last few days.

Ah rumors of camping in the Uintas abound. We'll see.

posted at 10:13:56 PM by Clint--comment